camp I THOUGHT THE WORLD ENDED IN MARCH | lightning bugs

[badgerstripe]

As the days grew longer and hotter, so too did the nights grow lively with the symphony of summer; crickets and rustling leaves. It brought about a feeling of nostalgia that Badgerstripe can attribute to her kit years, in which she chased butterflies and basked in the sun's warm glow. With that nostalgia came some of her only moments of peace, an opportunity to break away with her inner turmoil. Such is tonight, as she rests in the center of camp while her Clanmates share tongues under the moonrise's gentle hues.

Through half-closed eyes, Badgerstripe sees a gentle glimmer nearby, illuminating the darkness with a little flash of fire. What was..? She blinks once, twice, then trains her eyes in that spot, waiting intently.. and to her interest, the light shines again. Then another, some tail-lengths away; and a third yet, sparkling near the edge of camp. As the moon rises, so does its' companion stars.. and it seems some of them have grounded to join them in this peaceful night.

Like stars come to earth, Badgerstripe watches the luminescent creatures dance amongst the darkness, winking on and off. They are ethereal and tranquil; she finds herself in a moment of wonder, mesmerized by their soft glows. "Look," she murmurs, to whoever may be near - to anyone who would hear her words. She is quiet and hushed, as if her breath alone might disturb the celestial display before her, of whom she dubs.. "Starflies.."​

CHARACTER INFORMATION — ♡ ˗ˏˋ ꒰ ♡ ꒱ ˎˊ˗ ♡ — OUT OF CHARACTER

• badgerkit badgerpaw BADGERSTRIPE
  ━━ WARRIOR of THUNDERCLAN | 15 MOONS ,, ages every 21st
  ━━ NPC xx NPC | SIBLING to n/a — sibling adopts here!
  ━━ MATE to none | PARENT to none
  ━━ MENTOR to none | PREVIOUSLY MENTORED by BURNSTORM​
• 
  
  
• speech is #FB8B24​

 

[nightbird]

⋆˖⁺‧₊☽◯☾₊‧⁺˖⋆ nightbird is indifferent to the starlit creatures that dance through camp. the lead warrior hardly notices them until badgerstripe's call, the quiet insistence has her head tilted as she looks around. first, she sees nothing. then, as if they had planned it out, the bugs twinkle one after another.

starflies. the young warrior calls them. nightbird knew them under a far less pretentious name. to compare their dead friends and family in the sky to something as insignificant as bugs in their camp was certainly interesting, but harmless enough. "starflies, huh?" she hums, but leaves it at that. "what's the point of all that... glowing? besides making an easy target of themselves." nightbird wasn't truly looking for an answer. there were enough issues thunderclan faced, she needn't busy her mind on the oddities of insects. perhaps if someone had an interesting enough answer it'd provide some entertainment on this warm night.

‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎ ‎‎ ‎┌── GIVE ME THE BURDEN ⋅⋆⋅ GIVE ME THE BLAME ──┐‎

• ooc ↛
  

• 

• 
  NIGHTBIRD ✩ she/her, lead warrior of thunderclan, 33 ☾'s
  ⭃ a small black smoke molly with a white paw and pale silver eyes.
  ⭃ mate to raccoonstripe / / mentor to none
  ⭃ peaceful and healing powerplay permitted / / underline and tag when attacking ↛ see battle info here
  ⭃ penned by vayle ↛ @vayl3 on discord, feel free to dm for plots.
  

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[leafhusk]

⚘ pale yellow eyes flick towards the glowing bugs, and a childlike wonder takes over, raising a paw to gently bat at the creatures. bugs disgusted her, but she can’t help in being a hypocrite for the pretty ones that float without a care. their lives are short, and they make the best of it.

the ravine was flooding in stars, kissing the ground in a golden glow. leafhusk swats a starfly between two paws, a gentle mrrp drumming in her throat. she opens her paws, in hopes of getting a look at the thing, but it floats from her paws. up, up, back to the stars, she assumes.

“does it matter? they look amazing.” she says, watching the little bug fly until she loses it in the starry crowd. there’s been too much overthinking lately, a break is needed.​

 

[ORANGEPAW.]

WE WERE PLAYING IN THE SAND​

---

orangepaw has to admit, he's never seen something so beautiful up close before! it was like a little tiny star that came to visit from the sky, and there was so many of them! as he gasps, his eyes go wide while he watches so many of them float around. they're so beautiful. so sacred. so... guiding. he follows one on instinct, being careful not to bump into anyone while he does. he stops and watches it land on a tree but even more so, he watches as it lands right on his nose. it blinks it's light on and off in a pattern that makes his eyes go wide.

"w...woah... lookit... he's so... bright."

he wonders, has his mom seen these before? does she like these starflies? he hopes so. he will have to show her some anyways. they truly as beautiful, and a sight to behold. just one of the many beautiful things about nature.

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[THUNDERGLEAM]

What was the point, indeed... there was a purpose in everything, though those purposes were not always as efficient as many Clan cats might desire. So many of Father's teachings had detailed the meaning of every little thing- and fireflies were no different. Starflies, as Badgerstripe called them. Despite past clashes with the molly, Thundergleam reagrded her with a soft sweetness. "That is a lovely word," she murmured, voice shining with awe, brushed through with tranquility like a perfectly-preened pelt.

Orangepaw was clearly impressed by their brightness- Thundergleam's smile was steadfast, adoring. Leafhusk seemed to claim the use of their glowing was simply to look gorgeous, but Thundergleam knew the true reason. "In many ways, StarClan shows that they are with us always," she spoke warmly. The glow of the Stars enveloped them all... the Truth protected them all, preserved a haven, even if it was just for a moment. "They dance with us, now." And they could not stay forever... so Thundergleam could not simply lie in wait. She got to her feet, softly beginning to weave a waltz. ​

penned by pin ☾​

 

[WOLFKIT]

They knew they were supposed to be asleep, but the nursery heat had been too much for them, so they'd snuck out - Wolfkit would never fully comprehend how grateful they would be for the rebellion. The sky was swarmed with dancing lights that slowly swayed and the heartstopping breath of awe that escaped the sepia was instantaneous. Never before in their two moons of life had they seen something so... so beautiful. The kitten stepped as if bound by an otherworldly trance towards the warriors, taking a comfortable spot in front of them all. Starflies... They were frozen in time, so enamoured by the sight that nothing else seemed to get their eyes' attention. Large ears, on the other paw, gave a gentle flick at the explanation left by Thundergleam. "These... are StarClan?" Their ancestors were so close they could reach out a paw, touch, catch them even. But the kitten, full of playful energy, could not bring themselves to wrap their claws around the glowing bugs, the consequences of snuffing out their lights forever a weight that Wolfkit couldn't carry. Another thought pressed them, one that offered more questions than answers. "Flies are in StarClan?" Did that mean other animals went there too?


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[THISTLEPAW]

The others are entranced, but Thistlepaw sees none of it. Or, rather, he hears none of it. The apprentice is a few paces off, staring at the bright lights on his own. Not with the awe of a cat seeing StarClan, but of an apprentice who'd never truly gotten to be a kitten. The darks of his eyes are moon-wide, his ears perked up, and his tail twitches back and forth, back and forth. There's a tension building in his hindquarters. One that those around him are sure to recognize — the beginnings of a hunting crouch. A gleaming bug flutters downwards until it touches a leaf. One flutter, another. Thistlepaw straightens out his body. Plants his paws. Another blink of light. One more, and–

he pounces, a loud rustle likely disturbing parts of camp as his paw comes slamming down upon the bug. The other forepaw quickly follows to box it in, though he can still see its weakening gleam from between his toes.

𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓'𝐒 𝐀 𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐓𝐋𝐄 𝗕𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐃 🙴 𝗕𝐎𝐍𝐄  ╱ 𝑾𝑨𝑺 𝑰𝑻 𝑾𝑶𝑹𝑻𝑯 𝑰𝑻? ＜06.02＞ ⸙

• OOC. sorry thistlepaw has to ruin things <3
• 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐋𝐄𝐏𝐀𝐖. HE - HIM. YOUNG APPRENTICE OF THUNDERCLAN. ————— the son of an ex-kittypet has spent most of his life confined to the medicine den. bad circumstances and worse healing left him in a limbo between life and death which he only just escaped. he feels he must prove himself a great warrior so his clanmates will see him as anything more than a weak kittypet.  ╱ PENNED BY REVELATIONS
  
  
  
  a prickly-furred chocolate and slate cat with amber eyes. finally growing into his frame with moons of hard work and steady enough food, thistlepaw has taken a blocky, bulky shape with broad shoulders and densely muscled hindlimbs. his fur remains a tough-edged cloak, but now carries a well-groomed sheen despite how unruly it is.

• "speech"

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